Fifteen days ago
Chapter 8: Building the First Level of Dao
Gu Wen slowly opened his eyes, a strand of spiritual light lingering deep within his gaze.
He looked around and then glanced down at his own body.
Is this the beginning?
He never expected it to be so simple, as if understanding those obscure scriptures was as easy as learning to read.
No, it was his destiny that made the Dao scriptures that he couldn't understand before become simple.
When Gu Wen first obtained this cultivation technique, the scriptures on it were surrounded by blurry light circles, only vaguely visible.
He could only make out a few words, but quickly felt dizzy and disoriented due to mental exhaustion.
From this, he speculated that this so-called cultivation technique was not as simple as just words.
Words were just a form of expression, like symbols in modern disciplines.
They could only serve a symbolic purpose, not the existence of a certain law itself.
The significance of the cultivation technique was like a textbook, teaching living beings to cultivate, understand the laws of heaven and earth, which was the enlightenment of heaven and earth.
And destiny was to understand... what a load of crap, this was simply an enlightenment!
Gu Wen couldn't hide his excitement on his face.
He tried to calm himself down, but the more he thought about it, the harder it was to stay calm.
The function of destiny was simple, it was for comprehension.
It allowed him to quickly learn and apply the Jade Clear Heart Technique, correcting any errors in the cultivation process down to the slightest detail.
And the next time, Gu Wen wouldn't make the same mistakes again.
After several times, he became as proficient as muscle memory.
But this was limited to learning, it couldn't make him ascend in one step.
Just achieving this was already precious.
As the saying goes, the beginning of all things is difficult, the ability to quickly comprehend the Dao can have infinite applications.
First Level of Dao
"..."
Why are there so many missing?
Gu Wen felt like his heart was being twisted.
The consumption of destiny was the foundation of his cultivation to immortality.
It was understandable to have consumption, but one technique required nine destinies, and he didn't know where to obtain them now.
He couldn't possibly ask that Fairy Yuhua, right? Wouldn't that expose himself?
"First cultivate, take it step by step."
Now that the knife was at his neck, the situation in Da Gan was becoming more and more turbulent.
Just this year, there were three riots in the city just because of the construction of the palace.
He didn't know how long the court could hold on.
Many times, the collapse of a dynasty could happen in an instant, and all the accumulated problems could be swept away like a flood.
All he could do was to preserve himself.
Gu Wen suppressed his excitement and doubts, sitting cross-legged on the bed.
As he closed his eyes, there was a subtle rhythm in his breathing.
A stream of qi circulated around his body, as if there was an extra circulation outside his blood vessels, finally converging in his dantian, forming a tiny ball of light.
It felt a bit awkward at first, circulating through a full cycle.
When Gu Wen opened his eyes again, the candle had already been extinguished, and the night watchman's bell could be heard outside.
"Midnight, be careful with the candle."
About an hour had passed.
"A bit slow, and there wasn't that special feeling like the first time."
Gu Wen closed his eyes again for the second cultivation session, with a breath of true qi circulating in his body.
Perhaps it was due to his own aptitude.
Every step was extremely difficult, like crawling through a narrow tunnel.
At the end of the second session, judging by the shop assistants outside changing the oil in the lanterns, it was almost dawn.
The speed was still very slow.
Gu Wen closed his eyes again, this time focusing on destiny.
He could endure the tedious cultivation, but the current situation clearly didn't give him decades to cultivate.
He had to be fast, he had to resist before Zhao Feng, the imperial power, and the government pushed him to a dead end.
He had to strive for the ability to protect himself in the chaotic world before Da Gan completely collapsed.
Destiny trembled slightly, and strands of auspicious light fell down.
His cultivation didn't improve, but the speed of cultivation suddenly increased dramatically!
Previously, it was like navigating a maze, now it was like walking a straight path.
A strange sense of clarity emerged in Gu Wen's mind, deepening his understanding of the Jade Clear Heart Technique.
He nurtured a breath of true qi eagerly, becoming as skilled as an old cultivator who had been meditating for decades.
The destinies within corrected Gu Wen's deviated qi time and time again.
The light was as small as a grain of rice.
As small as a grain of rice.
As small as a thumb.
As big as an egg.
Then, as if reaching a critical point, the egg-sized light ball shrank, turning into a grain of rice, but this time it turned into a strand of azure qi.
Destiny trembled slightly, and Gu Wen had an epiphany in his heart.
Refining Essence into Qi
First Level of Jade Clear Dao Foundation: Endless Vitality
This cultivation technique was divided into nine levels and three realms, the first to third levels were the realm of refining essence into qi, which could make the breath continuous and endless, much like the rumored internal martial arts.
However, since it was a cultivation technique for immortals, it was probably more profound than internal martial arts.
Destinies Depleted
"..."
Gu Wen didn't expect to go bankrupt in the blink of an eye, and he still didn't know where to obtain destinies.
-
The Royal Palace, brightly lit with candles.
Zhao Feng, as an imperial prince, stood hesitantly in front of a side courtyard.
He wanted to go in but was blocked by a donkey eating grass at the door.
When someone tried to pull the donkey away, it kicked and sent a strong guard flying three meters away, knocking him unconscious.
This donkey was no ordinary creature.
Zhao Feng could only bow respectfully and say, "Elder, the kitchen has made some pastries. I would like to offer them to the Fairy for tasting."
The donkey paid no attention, as if it didn't understand human speech at all, leaving Zhao Feng awkwardly standing there, unable to enter but unwilling to leave.
Fairy Yuhua had been in the mortal world for several days now, and apart from the first day when he communicated with the Fairy, Zhao Feng had almost no interaction with her.
Even Gu Wen, his servant, had more interactions with the Fairy than him! And the Fairy took the initiative to talk to Gu Wen.
A prince like him couldn't even meet her privately, so much so that even a nod from her made him ecstatic.
Every morning, Zhao Feng would pass by here pretending, feeling satisfied just by looking at the house where Fairy Yuhua lived.
If Gu Wen knew, he would definitely mock Zhao Feng.
Wasn't this just being a bootlicker?
That was why Zhao Feng had to send someone to monitor Gu Wen, licking so deeply, cutting so close to the heart.
After a stalemate, Zhao Feng could only leave dejectedly, leaving the box of pastries on the ground,
The old donkey picked up the box and walked into the courtyard, under the moonlight, in the cool pavilion, a quiet and silent figure in white.
The old donkey placed the wooden box on the ground and said with its mouth, "This is from the Zhao family's junior."
Yuhua shook her head and said, "I have already taken the Fasting Pill."
Upon hearing this, the donkey opened the box with its mouth, nibbling on the pastries inside, saying, "To become an immortal, one must first transcend the mundane. Even if one's cultivation reaches the heavens, one still needs to eat like an ordinary person. Continuously taking pills may harm the body."
"Zhao's junior has good talent and background, and the Jade Clear Sect doesn't forget its benefactors."
Yuhua glanced sideways, the moonlight making her appear even colder, and said, "Elder, have you also received favors from the Zhao family?"
The donkey grinned and said, "The Emperor Daoist gave me a thousand-year spiritual medicine."
"I see, I thought Elder's eyes were dim, and he had kicked himself in the head."
Yuhua's tone was calm, and her straightforward insult made the donkey pause for a moment.
But he wasn't angry, he just smiled and said:
"You are quite something, insulting me is one thing, but why drag the Emperor Daoist into it? In the current world where everyone covets the chance to become an immortal, being able to control the path to immortality, the Zhao family is definitely not as simple as they appear on the surface. If we can get their help, the sect's grand plan will be furthered."
"How much did the Emperor Daoist give you for that statement?"
"A Golden Elixir."
"I will write a letter to inform the sect."
The donkey chuckled shamelessly, "Moving your mouth can get you benefits, only fools would refuse. The next thing I didn't get paid for, you can listen to it appropriately. Listening attentively is a taboo, it harms the heavens and oneself, it's better to use it sparingly. Leave the matter of finding the elixir of immortality to the Zhao family."
Finding the elixir of immortality was the sole purpose of Yuhua entering the path to immortality, and it was also crucial to the sect's thousand-year plan.
Seeing that Yuhua remained unmoved, the donkey was puzzled.
After circling around her, he asked, "Are you interested in that descendant of the Gu family? He has even lost that treasure now, and he no longer qualifies to be your protector. In my opinion, Zhao's junior is better, as the future Emperor of the Zhao family promised to give me a thousand-year great medicine."
"Is Elder's mind really muddled, always talking about love affairs?" Yuhua's tone was calm and merciless, without much emotional fluctuation even when scolding.
"I bear a great responsibility for the sect, so I must restrain myself."
The donkey shamelessly said, "I'm old, I just like to see you young people talk about love. Besides, why did you pass on the Jade Clear Heart Technique to that junior from the Gu family?"
The Jade Clear Heart Technique was one of the core techniques of the Three Clear Sect.
Although according to the Daoist sect's philosophy of "all under heaven can cultivate the Three Clear," it had been given to outsiders before, but not casually.
Yuhua calmly replied, "The Three Clear Sect owes him."
"Old-fashioned, just like your master." The donkey commented, "Not to mention, the Jade Clear Heart Technique is one of the most difficult techniques to learn in the Three Clear Sect. If you give it to him, he probably won't be able to cultivate it in his lifetime. In the thousand years of the Three Clear Sect, there have been less than ten people who have successfully cultivated it."
"And if I'm not mistaken, you didn't give him the Foundation Level, but the Dao Foundation Level."
One word made a world of difference in difficulty.
The Foundation Level was just a method of cultivating qi, which was not effective in the current environment of thin spiritual energy and chaotic laws.
Building the Dao was not about cultivating qi, but about refining oneself, forging the foundation of the Dao.
The former was about increasing cultivation, while the latter was about raising the limit, aptitude, and even involving the secrets of becoming an immortal.
One was like pouring water into a bucket, while the other was like expanding the bucket into a vast ocean.
Yuhua replied, "The spiritual energy in the Immortal Land is thin, ordinary cultivation methods are ineffective. As the name suggests, the opportunities to become an immortal are countless, and there is never a shortage of divine medicines, so building the Dao is even better."
"What if he can't learn it?"
"..."